Tom Marsh

Wednesday

Mar 6, 2013 at 8:05 AM

COLUMBIA, SC-- Thomas Evin Marsh died Saturday, March 2, 2013. He was born September 6, 1944, in Spartanburg, SC, and was the only child of Ada Dillard Campbell. As a single mother, she instilled in him a great work ethic and the ability to love unconditionally.Tom (Tommy to many and "The Frog" to all) graduated from Spartanburg High School in 1962, the University of South Carolina in 1966 with a B.S. in Banking and Finance, and the USC Law School in 1969. He was a member of Alpha Tau Omega Fraternity. He remained friends with many of his fraternity brothers for the rest of his life.He was appointed by J. Edgar Hoover to the FBI in August of 1969 and entered the FBI Training Academy the following October.Tom's first office/assignment was the Dallas Field Office, where he was a field agent in Wichita Falls, TX. He was transferred to the Washington, DC, Field Office in 1971. His investigative focus was white-collar crime. During his career, he served on the FBI's Inspection Team and, in 1980, went to Quantico to work in the Management Aptitude Program, where he trained agents for management positions until his transfer to Columbia.The FBI was always a labor of love for Tom. He made lifelong friends with lots of other young agents and truly treasured those friendships -- they were like brothers to him.He always wanted to come home to South Carolina and was finally able to in September 1994 with his final FBI assignment to the Columbia, SC, Field Office. He cherished his friends here and was a mentor to many of them. He retired in September 2001. A few weeks later he became Director of Security for the S.C. Education Lottery where he still worked. This was a perfect fit for Tom after his FBI career, and he loved his Lottery friends.Tom is survived by his wife, Kathie L. Marsh; his daughter, Jessica Marsh Daly; his son-in-law, Christopher Morgan Daly; and his stepson, Christopher Bowen (Bo) Collins. He was Poppy to four beautiful, treasured grandchildren: Erin Morgan Daly (11), Thomas Michael Daly - his namesake (8), Grace Beatrice Daly (4), and Taylor Marsh Daly (3 months). He was crazy about his family, always telling them to be careful out there and that he was proud of them.Tom loved the USC Fighting Gamecocks and the FBI fiercely. He was loyal to a fault, and truly was incredibly kind, generous (especially of spirit), and forgiving. His family and friends will remember his extremely quick wit. He knew how to be a great friend, father and husband.The family would like to thank the doctors, nurses and staff at South Carolina Oncology Associates and especially the nurses at Palmetto Health Richland in 11 East for taking such good care of Tom.In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation to the Harvest Hope Food Bank in Columbia, SC. The food bank was near and dear to Tom's heart and is where his son-in-law works.

The family will hold a visitation Thursday, March 7, from 5 pm-7 pm at Dunbar Funeral Home on Devine Street in Columbia, SC. A memorial service will be held on Friday, March 8, at 11 am in Rutledge Chapel on the Horseshoe of the University of South Carolina.Please sign the online guestbook at www.dunbarfunerals.com.

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